Students

If you are interested in learning more about the Syracuse University Bioforensics Laboratory please contact mamarcia@syr.edu.

Recent Student Achievements

  • Natalia Cancel-Quintana (2025) – SOURCE Award
  • Riley Smith (2024) – SOURCE Award
  • Emma Thoms (2024) – Internship at the New York State Forensic Investigation Center
  • Amani Rafiq (2024) – Internship at the Federal Bureau of Investigation
  • Morgan Frank – Internship at the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office Forensic Science Laboratory (MN) and Onondaga County Center of Forensic Sciences (2023)
  • Cameron Moore – Internship at the Michigan State Police Forensic Laboratory (2023)
  • Veronica Poole –  SOURCE grant 2023
  • Haley Crooks – Internship at the San Diego County Forensic Laboratory (2022)
  • Natalia Pedraza – SOURCE grant 2022-2023
  • Amber Vandepoele – 2022 Norma Slepecky Undergraduate Research Prize
  • Bridget Essing (news article) and Amber Vandepoele presented at the 32nd International Symposium on Human Identification (2021)
  • Amber Vandepoele
    • International Symposium on Human Identification (ISHI) Student Ambassador – see the article.
    • Recipient of internship with the Defense Forensic Science Center as a research apprentice – Army Educational Outreach Program (AEOP)
  • Bridget Essing
    • Internship with the Department of Defense
  • Linzy Dineen – Honors grant 2020, 2021 Biology Department award for Outstanding Achievement in Academics and Research
  • Bridget Essing – Honors – SOURCE grant 2020
  • Amber Vandepoele – SOURCE grant 2019-2020

Current Student Research

  • Natalia Cancel-Quintana – Novel Cell Separation Technique using Magnetic Beads and Restriction Endonucleases
  • Zachary Herzog – An Assessment of Collection Methods and DNA Profile Quality from Post-Blast Debris
  • Veronica Poole – The Quantification and Characterization of Cell-Free DNA in Touch Samples
  • Natalia Pedraza – Recovering Trace Evidence From Archival Samples
  • Amani Rafiq – Genetic and Biodiversity Data Integration for DNA-Based Geolocation Using ArcGIS Software
  • Riley Smith – Optimizing PCR Amplification of Single Cells using the Promega PowerPlex Fusion 6c Human DNA Amplification kit.
  • Emma Thoms – An the Development of a Methodology and Assessment of the Quality and Quantity of Nuclear DNA obtained from Rootless Hairs
  • Megan Voshage – Development of a Method for Whole Genome Amplification of Single Cells in a Forensic System
  • Taylor Walther – Recovery of Single Cells using Reverse Pressure Microscopy

Past Student Research

  • Taylor Cahalan – The Effects of Cleaning Products on the Detection of Hemoglobin in Human and Bovine Blood using Ultraviolet-Visible Spectroscopy
  • Kacey Christian –  Continued Validation of the DEPArray for Forensic Use
  • Haley Crooks – Single Cell Whole Genome Amplification for Forensic Samples
  • Olivia D’Angelo – DNA Sequence Analysis in Forensic Science: A Case for Motif-specific Stutter Modeling
  • Linzy Dineen – Developing and Validating a DNA-Based Geolocation Database for Intelligence Applications (Undergraduate Honors and Distinction)
  • Molly Dunegan –  Phylogenetic-Based Differential Extraction: A First Step to Leverage Universal DNA Profiles
  • Bridget Essing – Quantification of Secondary Transfer of Touch DNA (Undergraduate Honors and Distinction)
  • Spencer Eberst – A Comparison of Spectral Overlap in the Applied Biosystems 3100 and 3500 Series Genetic Analyzers using GeneMarker HID – Peak Height Correction
  • Morgan Frank – Sex-Based Targeted Recovery of Cells in a Heterogeneous Mixture: Separating Male and Female Like-Cells, RNA-FISH Method for the Identification and Recovery of Human Cells
  • Jonathan Hogg – Sex-Based Targeted Recovery of Cells in a Heterogeneous Mixture: Separating Male and Female Like-Cells
  • Brian Malanio – Visualization and Quantification of Epithelial Cells on Ammunition
  • Jacquelyn Marasco – Analysis of Shotgun Shell Profiling
  • Elizabeth Mitchell – Recovery of DNA from Fingerprints
  • Cameron Moore –  Phylogenetic Differential Separation of Environmental Samples, An Unsupervised Machine Learning Approach to Differentiating Allelic Signal from Artifactual Signal in Capillary Electrophoresis Analysis of Amplified DNA
  • Natalie Novotna – Optimizing Separation of Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Mixed Samples Through Chemical and Enzymatic Treatments, Single Cell Whole Genome Amplification for Forensic Samples
  • Jenny Nguyen – Development of a Nondestructive Protein Hydrogel to Maximize Collection of Cell-free DNA for Forensic Application
  • Julia Sousa – The Transition to Forensic DNA Sequencing Analysis – Optimizing Analytical Thresholds
  • Amber Vandepoele – Phylogenetic Differential Separation of Environmental Samples (Undergraduate Distinction), DNA Sequence Analysis in Forensic Science: A Case for Motif-specific Stutter Modeling
  • Davis Watkins – Revisiting Single Cell Analysis in Forensic Science, Single Cell Whole Genome Amplification for Forensic Samples
  • Adam Weinstein  – Y-DNA: Identifying Optimal Quantitation Conditions and Evaluation of the QIAGEN Investigator 24-Plex
  • Victoria Williamson – Enhanced DNA Mixture Deconvolution of Sexual Offense Samples Using the DEPArray™ System.
  • Hannah Xavier – DEPArray NxT Optimization & Stutter Peak Incidence in Single Epithelial Cells
  • Nori Zaccheo – Sex-based targeted recovery of cells in a heterogeneous mixture: selective labeling of male and female like-cells using a Y-chromosome specific probe
  • Taylor Zekri – Validation of STK Paper for Semen Identification
  • Angie Zhao – Modeling Stutter and Pull-up Using the GlobalFiler Human DNA Amplification Kit in Forensic DNA Analysis (Undergraduate Honors and Distinction)